


i'll let you keep what you stole

by everyshootingstar



Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, M/M, Soulmate AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-07-13
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:39:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,193
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25250029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/everyshootingstar/pseuds/everyshootingstar
Summary: Michael goes to college, gets therapy, gets friends (other than Max and Isobel), and somehow craves chocolate milkshakes and...french fries?“God, I’m really craving a milkshake and fries,” Michael says as he closes the thick textbook with a definiteslap; “Chocolate maybe, so I can dip my fries in it,” he’s in a study group with a few people he’d met in one of his organic chemistry classes; and while it wasn’t a hard subject, having people to bounce the material off of seemed to help his grades.
Relationships: Michael Guerin/Alex Manes
Comments: 16
Kudos: 121





	i'll let you keep what you stole

**Author's Note:**

> Doing the soulmate AUs! this is the first one; which is 
> 
> 1) you crave whatever your soulmate is eating
> 
> as usual, I took liberties with this and with the universe; Michael's in college and slightly more well adjusted; it's assumed (though never mentioned) that any canon events other than Alex's dad being an asshole and ruining the good thing that he and Michael had never happened. (so yeah, there's probably no Rosa dying. no noah being there to mind control isobel. its just a basic bitch story of soulmates being reunited via food) 
> 
> michael goes to college away from roswell and alex gets shipped out, he does lose his leg but he's back in roswell after 4 years. 
> 
> like. they're all slightly more well adjusted and tbh this is just 3k of me being self indulgent. 
> 
> i hope you enjoy! if you have any suggestions for the next one i should write, let me know! also im on tumblr @ [alienhaus](https://alienhaus.tumblr.com) so catch me there!

“God, I’m really craving a milkshake and fries,” Michael says as he closes the thick textbook with a definite  _ slap _ ; “Chocolate maybe, so I can dip my fries in it,” he’s in a study group with a few people he’d met in one of his organic chemistry classes; and while it wasn’t a  _ hard  _ subject, having people to bounce the material off of seemed to help his grades. 

He sits back and runs his fingers through his hair, tugging at the curls gently, “Think we could take a break and grab some food? I’m actually starving right now.” He offers a hesitant smile around the table; four years in and he’s still not sure how to  _ really  _ make friends, especially since taking up his self-imposed loner lifestyle. 

Megan closes her textbook too, “I think that’s a great idea,” she says easily, brushing her shoulder length green hair back from her face, and just like that, the others close their books as well. “There’s a nice place just off campus that has decent diner food. Milkshakes too,” she says with a grin over in MIchael’s direction. “I know we usually meet up bi-weekly to just study, but going out and getting something to eat before coming back to study more shouldn’t be too much off of our usual schedule, yeah?” 

There’s quiet agreement around him and Michael feels grateful for Megan, for her easy ability to get others to go along with things, “Sweet, hey, we could make this a thing? Just, once a week we go get food or something before or after the study sessions?” he asks as he starts putting his books away, needing to do something with his hands so he’s not just sitting there, waiting. 

“Yeah man, I’d be down with that,” Josh says, standing up from the table, “But like, hey, I don’t really have the money for anything too crazy expensive this week,” he looks from Michael and then to Megan, “So…” 

Megan cuts in seamlessly, “The food is ridiculously cheap, big portions too, so we could probably share if that’d help you out,” she offers with a smile, and then she’s standing up, looking over at Francine expectantly, “Are you coming?” she asks. 

Francine, though a bit nervous (and Michael feels that he  _ really  _ does,) nods slowly and stands as well, gathering her things. “Sure, I could use something to eat. Are we coming back here after we’re done? Or are we going to call it a day?” 

Michael stands up, shouldering his bag, “Well, if we feel like coming back to study more after, we can? But also, I have an apartment off campus I share with my brother, if you guys want we could go back there after?” 

There’s soft murmurs of agreement and Megan pulls her phone out of her pocket, “I’ll text Lamar, let him know where we’re going. He said he’d be late today, remember? So I’ll send him the address of the diner, tell him to meet us there if he wants and we’ll lay the plan out to him there?” 

Michael pulls his phone out of his pocket to text Isobel, knowing she’d sent it through their group chat, so he ignores the notification and opens up his text thread with Isobel, letting Megan lead them out of the library and down the street to the diner. 

**Iz**

_ not to brag, but i think i made friends today _

She doesn’t reply immediately, so he puts his phone back into his pocket before getting pulled into a conversation with Josh and Francine about the lab that was due next week. 

====

Sometime later, when he’s seated in a corner booth with the others and he’s got a chocolate milkshake and a basket of fries in front of him, he suddenly remembers how much he  _ hates _ the idea of dipping his french fries into his milkshake. 

“Man, why did I think this was a good idea?” Michael asks out loud as he pops a fry coated in chocolate ice cream into his mouth. “What on  _ earth  _ made me think that ice cream and french fries  _ together _ are a good combo.” 

Megan snorts quietly as she takes a vicious bite of her burger, waiting until she’s chewed it up and swallowed properly, “You suddenly started craving it but you actually hate it?” she asks. “Huh, that’s weird, but not unheard of. Maybe your soulmate is eating it right now?” 

It’s Michael’s turn to snort, “Soulmate? I don’t have a soulmate. And the closest thing I  _ had  _ to one left the state suddenly without telling me.” he says bitterly. “Maybe I’m just missing home. We had a diner there and the only way to really eat the fries was to dip them in the shake to make them taste better. Or at least, that’s what I’d been told. Never really got to eat there as much, and when I did, the food tasted fine to me.” 

He leaves out the part where most of the time when he  _ did  _ eat there, it was the leftovers of Isobel and Max’s food and usually it was just the half of a burger and  _ maybe  _ some almost cold fries, because living out of his truck and working part time at the junkyard never really paid much, and what he did get paid went into gas and tune-ups and easy to heat up non perishable food items. 

Megan hums quietly, getting a far off look on her face, “It could be though, think of how romantic it’d be for your soulmate to be back in your hometown, eating that frankly disgusting combination of foods and you’re here, craving it because you miss them.” 

Michael tilts his head and pushes away the half melted milkshake, “Yeah, I don’t think I’ll get that,” he says. “It’s a sweet thought and all, but he hasn’t contacted me in a while now.” 

When the silence at the table gets to be too much for him, he clears his throat, “Anyway, this is too heavy of a conversation for right now. You guys have to at  _ least  _ get me drunk before I go into my tragic backstory.” 

Megan just looks at him with narrowed eyes, “I’ll convince you yet,” she says and while Michael  _ should  _ be worried, he just feels overwhelmed at the idea of having  _ friends  _ that aren’t Isobel or Max. 

====

Isobel’s reply comes about twenty minutes after saying goodbye to his new  _ friends,  _ including Lamar, who’d met up with them at the cafe after they’d finished eating, his phone vibrating as he closes the door to his and Max’s apartment. 

**Mikey**

_ I’m so proud of you, it only took you four years to make friends, but I’m still proud.  _

**Mikey**

_ Oh, and guess who I met up with today? You’re not going to believe this.  _

**Mikey**

_ [Photo Attachment] _

Michael nearly drops his phone when the picture comes through, because standing there, beside Isobel and looking every  _ bit  _ as gorgeous as he had before, is Alex Manes. 

He looked a little older, a little more tired with bags under his eyes as if he’d just emerged from somewhere after not having any sleep at all, but there he was, in the flesh. Still gorgeous, still so fucking  _ pretty _ that it made something in Michael ache. 

**Is**

_ Okay, holy shit. Seriously?  _

**Mikey**

_ As a heart attack. He asked about you too. Seemed very happy that you’d fucked off and gone to college like you said you wanted to. Was surprised that you and Max left me here though. Not that I blame him, I’m also surprised you two have managed to make it for four years.  _

**Mikey**

_ I know something happened between the two of you, and I’ll always have your back because you’re my brother and he broke your heart somehow, I just know he did. But if you want to talk to him again, I think he’d be willing to talk to you. Just let me know. I don’t want you to regret not giving him another chance if that’s what you want.  _

**Is**

_ I need to think about it. Don’t give him my number yet, but. I’m glad he’s back in one piece, for what it’s worth. Tell him that? And you know you could always come out here with us, Is. We’ve got a three bedroom apartment here and it’s pretty nice. Maybe not up to your standards completely, but we’re both students who have part-time jobs so we have to do with what we have.  _

**Mikey**

_ We’re going to meet up tomorrow after he gets done at the base. To catch up and maybe have a few drinks, gossip about all the cute boys and all that. You know, the usual. If he says anything about you I’ll definitely let you know ;)  _

**Mikey**

_ And thank you for the offer but I’m doing just fine out here in Roswell :)  _

Michael isn’t sure how he feels about Isobel and Alex becoming best friends, but he’s not going to say anything against that, because despite his torrid history with Alex, he’s  _ not  _ a bad person; and it had taken a couple of years and visits with the campus counselor for him to come to that conclusion, but now he knew better. Despite the small amount of resentment he still held, it was nothing compared to what he used to feel at first. 

“We should visit Isobel for spring break,” Michael says when Max comes into the living room. “I kind of miss her.” 

Max is reading something from his phone, but acknowledges Michael by giving him a thumbs up, and Michael laughs a little and shakes his head before disappearing into his bedroom to finish up an essay for his English class. 

====

  
  


**Mikey**

_ [Photo Attached] He’s still absolutely disgusting, btw. Just wanted you to know that nothing’s changed with him _

In the photo, Alex is seated across from Isobel, face flushed as he laughs, one hand holding a french fry as he dips it into the chocolate milkshake in front of him. 

Michael inhales sharply and the craving for a milkshake and fries makes itself known again, and he quickly texts Isobel back, fingers shaking a little. 

**Mikey**

_ Yeah, we’re together now, why?  _

He sits down heavily, and suddenly, Megan’s words echo in his mind again, about  _ soulmates _ and the  _ cravings _ and,  _ and _ . 

**Is**

_ I think Alex is my soulmate.  _

====

Four years was a long time to be away from Isobel, from Roswell, but by the time Michael’s finished his second degree; he felt content enough to return to Roswell; felt like he  _ needed  _ to; the last few months,  _ knowing  _ Alex was  _ also  _ there had made him feel homesick. 

He didn’t expect the two of them to pick up and start off where they left,  _ no _ , there was too much there they needed to talk about first, to figure out, but within in the past few months, he’d finally let Isobel give Alex his number and they’d been exchanging hesitant text messages with each other, small antecedents about their day, pictures of various things they’d eaten, and memorably, one group photo that Megan had taken on her phone and sent to him. 

**Alex**

_ You look happy. I like that.  _

Michael hadn’t quite known what to feel then, he’d just placed his phone down and went to work on one of his final essays, returning an hour later to finally reply with a simple,  _ I am happy.  _

After that, their texting had become something of a habit, something Michael found himself doing whenever he had a spare moment, and, thankfully, Alex seemed inclined to reply back just as much. 

So when Michael pulled up outside of Isobel’s house and got out, Max slamming the door behind him and calling out for her, he didn’t pause when Alex followed her out the front door and down the front steps. 

“God, look at you!” Isobel says, throwing her arms around Michael, “College did you some good, huh?” she teases as she leans into the hug he gives her. “You look all grown and  _ respectable  _ now.” 

Michael doesn’t blush, but when he glances over at Alex and sees him looking  _ very  _ appreciatively at him, he feels  _ warm _ and  _ happy _ and  _ home _ . 

Isobel steps away and nudges him gently as she moves over to hug Max before she launches into a long story about something that’d happened last week, leading him back towards the house, while Michael stands there with Alex. 

“She’s not really subtle,” Alex says, amused, looking every bit as nervous as Michael feels. “I told her I’d talk to you, she didn’t have to pull the whole leaving us alone so we’d be forced to talk, thing.” 

Michael looks at Alex,  _ really  _ looks at him, takes in the casual dress, the straightness of his shoulders that used to not be there, how he’d spent the past four years  _ growing  _ into his body, and without much thought, he takes several steps forward, wrapping his arms around Alex. 

“I really missed you,” Michael mumbles, pressing his face into Alex’s hair, “I know we’ve got a lot to talk about, a lot to  _ figure out _ , but the counselor I was seeing always taught me to be more honest about how I feel, and right now I feel like I just really need to be around you again.” 

Alex laughs softly, wrapping his arms around Michael as tight as he can, “We do have a lot to talk about, but that doesn’t stop us from sharing a hug,” he says quietly. “It’s so good to see you, when they gave me the option to be stationed here for the remainder of my time, I took it. You’re not the only one who’s been seeing someone to help work through all the bullshit. When Isobel told me you’d gone to college out of Roswell, I was happy, I’m so  _ proud  _ of you Michael.” He pulls back, resting his hands on Michael’s arms, “And I’d hoped, well, the selfish part of me hoped that because Isobel was still here, that meant you’d come back too.” 

Michael stares at Alex, taking in the confident way he’s holding his head back, the way he’s staring right at Michael, “What about your dad?” he asks, and though he’d let Max heal his hand sometime between his freshman and sophomore year of college, he still feels the phantom ache from the hammer, the way it’d scarred his skin and broken his bones. 

“He’s the least of my worries,” Alex says, “And he’s far away from here right now; it’s not to say that one day he won’t be an issue for me, he’s been talking really big about coming back to Roswell and stirring things up, but. I’m an adult now, and I can make my own decisions. Who I want to be friends with, who I want to associate with, who I want to  _ date _ …” he trails off. “I hurt you a lot in the past, and so did my dad, but I  _ promise  _ you Michael, I’ll never leave again. Even if all you want to be is my friend. I’m  _ here _ .” 

“We’ll do this right, this time,” Michael says, “We’re both back, slightly more well adjusted…” he trails off, “Right? We won’t have to keep it a secret this time.” 

Alex smiles, bright and beautiful, shaking his head, “No more secrets,” he says. “Which means I should probably tell you that I got injured pretty badly overseas, but I’m alright now, but you’ll be seeing it eventually and I don’t want you to freak out.” He looks at Michael seriously. “Don’t freak out, okay?” 

Michael nods slowly, “Yeah, hey, I have something to tell you too,” he says, “Something big, and I hope  _ you  _ don’t freak out either.” 

(All things considered, telling Alex he was alien wasn’t quite on his list of things to do  _ at this moment _ , but Alex had been earnest about no more secrets and he’d be damned if he wouldn’t do anything as long as it meant Alex would stay.) 

====

Isobel and Max weren’t too upset about Michael spilling their secret, especially not when Isobel told Max that Alex Manes was Michael’s  _ soulmate _ , something completely unheard of for  _ their kind _ , and while Isobel didn’t really have a soulmate that she could tell, nor did Max (though he was  _ still  _ holding out for Liz), they were happy that their brother had found someone. 

Alex had taken the secret surprisingly well, and when Michael had unwrapped his hand to show him that Max had healed it completely, he’d gotten teary and taken Michael’s hand in his, pressing a soft kiss against the palm. 

“I’m sorry he hurt you,” Alex had murmured, “Even after all these years, I  _ still  _ feel guilty about it.” 

Michael had stopped his train of thought there, had pulled him close instead, “Don’t,” he says. “I’d never regret protecting you from him, and I’ll do it again if I need to.” he promises, “I’m not interested in living in the past or in that shed, I want to live here in the  _ now,  _ with you.” 

Alex had nodded fiercely before surging up and kissing Michael with four years worth of pent up emotion and longing, fingers tangling in his hair to keep him there. 

(Not that Michael complained any, because as far as he was concerned, he’d  _ never  _ tire of kissing Alex.) 

Later on that night, when they were curled up in bed together, naked, sweaty skin pressed together after several vigorous rounds of making up for lost time, Michael pressed a kiss to Alex’s forehead and closed his eyes, “I think we’re soulmates,” he says with a soft sigh. 

“Yeah?” Alex’s reply is quiet, wondrous, “What makes you say that?” 

“Whenever you go to Crashdown, you get fries and a chocolate shake, and whenever you get that,  _ I  _ get the fucking urge to eat it too, even though I  _ hate _ that disgusting combination.” 

Alex goes quiet and then he snorts softly, “Oh my god,” he says, “ _ Oh my god _ ,” he pulls back to look at Michael properly, “Are  _ you  _ the reason why I got the urge to eat beef ramen and potted meat for like six months straight?” 

Affronted, Michael flicks Alex’s nose, “I was a  _ poor  _ college student, it’s all I could afford, thank you. Unlike  _ you _ , a heathen who  _ chose  _ to ruin french fries with disgusting ice cream.” 

Dropping his head down onto Michael’s chest, he  _ laughs _ , his entire body shaking with tremors as he does, and Michael soon follows, wrapping his arms around Alex, rolling them over until Alex is under him, pressed against the bed. 

“I can’t believe it, but also I kind of  _ can _ ,” Alex mumbles against Michael’s chest before letting his head drop back against the bed, staring up at Michael with a warm, open expression. 

Michael leans down, presses a kiss to his mouth and then one to his jaw, “I’m so glad you’ve come back to me,” he whispers. 

“And I’m glad you let me come back,” Alex echoes, nudging Michael’s head up for another kiss, this one longer and softer, holding it until they’re both breathless. 


End file.
